As I thoroughly read through the website, a lot of what I read was information I had previously been exposed to. However, I did learn several interesting facts. One was "computers are included in the curriculum within the classroom rather than set apart in a separate room or lab." I knew that computers should be included in the curriculum, but I never thought about the location of the computers mattering. I assumed it was just as helpful to take students to the computer lab as having students use them within the classroom. I think this key point is encouraging teachers to make technology a natural part of the classroom environment. Rather than having one day a week designated to attending the computer lab, computers should be used constantly throughout the week. I also learned a lot reading the section "offer support for young readers." I had never thought that being allowed to type their papers would actually help students. Rather, I tended to assume that it would be an obstacle for them. However, I now know that word processors actually encourage children to view writing as a process. They allow students to focus on ideas, enabling them to more easily compose and revise text. Lastly, I loved reading about speech synthesizers. Speech synthesizers use a digital voice that reads a student exactly what he has written. Since it is reading the actual writing, and not what the writer meant to say, it provides the immediate, focused feedback that is very helpful to students. "For example, when reading aloud a series of words without capitals or ending punctuation, the voice does not stop at the end of the idea. The importance of punctuation and capitals soon becomes clear."
The most important thing I learned from watching the videos is it really is possible to incorporate technology into your lesson plans. The examples given were not elaborate projects on the computer; they were simple tasks that had a natural connection to the curriculum being taught. In the first video (I Love Spiders), I really liked the idea of communicating with another classroom in the country. Not only does it cause your students to be excited about collecting data/information (i.e. pictures of spiders), it gives them a reason and purpose for doing it - sharing the information with another eager class. In addition, it allows your students to learn about other areas of the country. They might not get this information anywhere else, and if they do, it will probably be out of a textbook. The other video that really impressed me was Brown Bear, Brown Bear. I was not impressed because her activity was something amazing and unique that I have never seen before. In the past few years, I have observed countless activities tied to the popular Brown Bear book. However, I was impressed because she was found a way to use technology with kindergarteners. Previously, I have underestimated the abilities of younger elementary school children. I love the fact that her kindergarten students were able to use the computer to draw pictures of the assigned topic. That's so neat! After watching these videos, I have decided to do my best to incorporate technology in a variety of my lesson plans. What is my main motivating factor? The children's reactions! They seem to all love using technology and get so excited about a topic that is presented through technology :)
For my interview, I met with Ms. Herren, a 2nd grade teacher who teaches at Whitehead Road Elementary. I began the interview by asking her to describe the types of technology she has access to in her classroom. She responded by saying they use technology almost daily. One way is with a program called Sentio: each student has a clicker and are supposed to log in to their particular class, using their ID or lunch number, in order to take their math test. They have a hard copy of the test in front of them, but they answer in with their clickers. Other forms of technology are incorporated into centers. During reading centers, students are allowed to use the computers to play "Ticket to Read." Another option is to listen to a book on tape. In addition, students have access to a little machine that they can slide a card (with a word written on it) into and have the machine read it to them; they are supposed to say the word along with the machine. Ms. Herren also has a personal laptop and has access to the media center where she can check out tape recorders, digital cameras or video cameras. However, the main form of technology she uses is a "technological whiteboard," called a Smartboad. Her classroom does not have a television, VCR or overhead because these technologies have now been replaced by the Smartboard. Naturally, I asked her to explain more about the Smartboard because I have never heard of or experienced it. Smartboard is a technological whiteboard that looks like a movie screen; it is a big square screen with small areas of whiteboard on each side. It comes with an eraser and markers that allow you to use the Smartboard as a whiteboard though (except the markers are different than regular Expo markers- they show up on the screen without actually marking it). Next, Ms. Herren hooks up her laptop the the Smartboard so anything she does on her laptop is broadcast over the Smartboard for the whole class to see. She has a program, Smartnotebook, that allows her to design individual lesson plans. There are just so many different things you can do! For example, if you are teaching a lesson on time, you can pull up a clock that is actually ticking off the seconds and minutes. Ms. Herren absolutely loves her Smartboard because it is touch screen as well, making it even more interactive for her students. For example, when they had a lesson on money, students came up and pulled coins to different areas to make different dollar amounts. She also uses numerous teacher websites to gather ideas for upcoming lesson plans.
When asked if there were any other technologies she wished she had in her classroom, Ms. Herren replied, "Not really. My Smartboard seems to be able to do almost anything." She thinks it would be too difficult if each 2nd grader had his/her own laptop. However, she did comment that she wished her school gave access to YouTube. Two of her student teachers went out to a river and made a video using their camera. They wanted to upload the video on YouTube and broadcast it over the Smartboard. Unfortunately, they were unable to do this because the website is blocked from the school.
I concluded the interview by asking Ms. Herren a final question: how do your students respond to the technology used in your classroom? As expected, she said her students LOVE it. They love getting to use the computers and love getting to come up and do different things on the Smartboard. She said whenever she asks for volunteers, almost every student has their hand raised.
